Teaching › Listening Room
Active listening is practice. These are performances I return to again and again — curated by theme, with notes on what to listen for. Don't just enjoy them. Study them.
| Artist | Song | Listen For | Find |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carmen McRae | My Funny Valentine | The space between phrases. She never rushes the story. | YouTube ↗ |
| Billie Holiday | The Very Thought of You | Behind-the-beat phrasing. How little ornamentation she uses — and how much it lands. | YouTube ↗ |
| Sarah Vaughan | Lush Life | Breath control and the long line. Notice where she breathes — and where she doesn't. | YouTube ↗ |
| Shirley Horn | Here's That Rainy Day | Tempo as expression. The slowness is the meaning. | YouTube ↗ |
| Artist | Song | Listen For | Find |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ella Fitzgerald | How High the Moon | Ease at tempo. How relaxed she sounds even at a full burn. | YouTube ↗ |
| Jon Hendricks | Cloudburst | Diction at speed. Every word lands — even at 280 bpm. | YouTube ↗ |
| Betty Carter | The Trolley Song | Drama and tempo manipulation. She owns the song absolutely. | YouTube ↗ |
| Mark Murphy | Milestones | Scat as narrative. He's telling a specific story, not just improvising. | YouTube ↗ |
| Artist | Song | Listen For | Find |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bessie Smith | Downhearted Blues | Authority. She holds the room before she sings the first note. | YouTube ↗ |
| Esther Phillips | What a Difference a Day Makes | Rhythmic freedom inside a groove. She floats over the band without losing the pocket. | YouTube ↗ |
| Nina Simone | I Put a Spell on You | Commitment to the lyric. Nothing is held back. Nothing. | YouTube ↗ |
Transcribe one phrase per session — not the whole song. Write it out. Sing it back exactly. Then make it yours.
Three different arrangements of the same song — same melody, same changes, completely different interpretations. Listen to each one and ask yourself: what choices did the arranger make?
| Artist | Album | Track |
|---|---|---|
| Boswell Sisters | Shine on Harvest Moon | Play |
| Tony Bennett | Sings Ellington Hot & Cool | Play |
| Nina Simone | The Essential Nina Simone | Play |
After listening: What tempo did each choose? What instruments? Where does the singer come in? What makes each version feel like a different world?
| Song | Artist | Find |
|---|---|---|
| I'm Old Fashioned | Susannah McCorkle (Songs of Johnny Mercer) | YouTube ↗ |
| Tea for Two | Holly Cole Trio (Limited Edition) | YouTube ↗ |
| Nature Boy | Annie Ross (Sings a Handful of Songs) | YouTube ↗ |
| She's a Lady | Patricia Barber (Modern Cool) | YouTube ↗ |
| Nice Work If You Can Get It | Carmen McRae (It Takes a Whole Lot of Human Feeling) | YouTube ↗ |
Listen for how each singer uses rhythm as an expressive tool — triplets, swing eighths, syncopation, call and response.
| Song | Artist | Find |
|---|---|---|
| Oh Look At Me Now | Nancy Wilson | YouTube ↗ |
| This Time the Dream's on Me | Annie Ross | YouTube ↗ |
| Our Love Is Here to Stay | Louis Armstrong & Ella Fitzgerald | YouTube ↗ |
| Lullaby of Broadway | Dianne Reeves (A Little Moonlight) | YouTube ↗ |
| Sampa | Gilberto Gil (Acoustic) | YouTube ↗ |
| Bala Com Bala | Elis Regina | YouTube ↗ |
Rubato — from the Italian "to rob" — means stealing time from one section and paying it back in another. Notice where the pulse bends, and how it always resolves.
These performances go beyond singing — they're fully inhabited narratives. Study them for conviction.
Click any track to play in the audio bar. Use these to internalize each groove before you apply it to a song — if you can't feel it, you can't sing it.
Swing eighth notes are not "da-DUM da-DUM." They live in the relaxed space between triplets and straight eighths. The best reference: listen to the ride cymbal on any Bill Evans Trio recording from the early 1960s.
Listen to the recording, then work through the lesson PDF. Each one focuses on a specific aspect of the craft.
Lou Rawls. A lesson in legato phrasing and how to let a melody breathe.
Marc Jordan. Emotional directness and restraint in a pop-influenced jazz setting.
Ernie Andrews. Rubato and free time — bending the pulse without losing the feeling.